Beer Log: March 20-31, 2012

Beer Log: March 20-31

Mar. 21. Today’s Beer: New Belgium’s Abbey:  Belgian style Dubbel. It claims to have 6 different malts. Strong yeasty scent and banana aroma and flavor. Beautiful brown amber color. Nice thick head. Sweet and caramelly with a hint of burnt brown sugar.

Mar. 22: Today’s Beer: Alaskan’s: Birch Bock: Dopplebock with Alaska Birch Syrup – part of their Pilot Series of Limited Edition Specialty Ales. I saw that this was brewed with Birch and immediately bought it. The only other time I remember coming across a beer brewed with birch, it was Life and Limb (great collaboration between Sierra Nevada and Dogfish Head, which turned me on to the wonderfulness of Dogfish Head beers). So, I was very excited about this and fortunately my expectations were met. This is a very sweet beer, but it is a distinct type of sweetness that differs from the typical malty sweetness of normal browns or ambers. Also a light toasty flavor, but very subtle. It is lightly fizzy, but with virtually no head during the pour. Deep amber, almost ruby orange in color. Strong at 8.5% ABV, but hardly any alcohol taste. I’m definitely enjoying the alternative syrups that brewers are using (rye is another current favorite).

Interlude. For the past week, I haven’t tried anything new. Instead, I’ve sampled some standards and favorites, such as the Laugunitas Imperial Red, Stone’s Smoked Porter, and Pliny. Sometimes, it’s good to just drink and not write. Enjoy without analysis. Cheers!

Mar. 28: Today’s Beer: Heretic’s: Evil Twin Red Ale: As I poured it into a glass, it looked much darker than most reds. It almost looked more like a deep brown. But holding it up to the light, there was a deep amber red glow coming through the darkness. Very alluring color. Nice medium head that dissipated quickly. Mild bitterness in the foam. Very creamy foam – though after watching David Mitchell’s thoughts on the use of “creamy” to describe bitters, I’m not sure about using that descriptor. If you haven’t seen that segment of “David Mitchell’s Soapbox”, you need to check it out. The dominant flavor is a floral bitter hoppiness, with a faint citrus, almost grapefruit  taste. Beyond the hoppiness is a deep dark roasted malt flavor. Not quite burnt – almost like the outside of a golden brown roasted marshmallow. Excellent balance of malt and hop. Mmmm. Heretic – I’m becoming a believer. At 6.8%ABV it has a kick, but only a mild one.

Mar. 29: Today’s Beer: Full Sail’s: E.S.B: Extra Special Barney. Special edition 22oz. brewed by Barney Brennan for part of their Brewer’s Share series. Beautiful golden amber color. Light head, low carbonation. Fruity, almost banana-like aroma, but no banana in the flavor. The taste is fruity, but it is more akin to apricot than anything else. As the fruitiness subsides, the flavor turns more sweet and caramel, almost vanilla, and finishes with a pleasant bitterness. The beer boasts that it uses 5 malts and Challenger hops. Unique, well balanced, and refreshing.

Mar. 31. Today’s Beer: Stone’s: Arrogant Bastard Ale: Oddly enough, this is the first time I’ve tried the flagship beer from Stone. About damn time. Nice dark brown amber color. Medium thick head. The first taste is an earthy bitterness. This is an aggressively hopped beer, and rightly so. It has a very mild sweet undertone which blends nicely with a hint of tartness in the hops. The malt has a lightly toasty flavor. Not really an IPA, more like an highly hopped brown. Pleasant strength at 7.1% Definitely would not describe this beer as “creamy.” Cheers!

Beer Log: March 9-19, 2012

Beer Log: March 9-19

Mar. 12: Today’s Beer: Devil’s Canyon’s California Sunshine IPA: Another fine beer from Devil’s Canyon! This is actually a Rye IPA, a style I’ve come to enjoy very much. At 85 IBU it is hoppy, but very smooth. There is also a very nice bright sweetness and a toasty maltiness that is very inviting. Reasonably strong at 7.1%ABV. Reasonable head, but dissipates quickly. Even though it is pale, it is almost more like a brown in the toasty, earthy sweetness. I’ve been meaning to get to Belmont to check out their other selections, but haven’t gotten around to it yet. Now, with this, the second beer I’ve seen from them, I’m even more committed to getting over there. I also picked up a bourbon barrel aged Full Boar that I’m very excited about trying.

Mar. 13: Today’s Beer: Heretic Brewing’s Shallow Grave Porter: Very Dark. Verry Dark. Like being hit in the head with a 2x4. But in a good way. Deep dark burnt malt dominates, with only a hint of sweetness – just enough to pull back from the edge of the bitterness cliff. Only a hint of sour. This is the first I’ve tried from Heretic. Impressive stuff.
Mar. 14. Today’s Beer: Bear Republic’s: XP Pale: Classic West Coast Pale. Quite tasty. Light and citrusy with a distinct piney character, probably from the Cascade hops. Also a hint of a peppery flavor. Mild sweetness from the malt, but overall the hops are front and center. Not as bitter as Sierra’s Pale and not as sweet as Firestone’s 31.

Mar. 16. Today’s beer: 21^st Amendment’s: Bitter American: Pale Ale. Classic bitter American style. Smooth lightly hopped at 42 IBU and relatively low alcohol at 4.4 ABV. Nice and earthy maltiness. Not as floral or citrusy as some pales and IPAs. Great drinking beer with sipping flavor. Fizzy but not too much heard. Good malty aroma.

Mar. 17. Today’s Beer: Nectar Ales: Black Xantus Imperial Stout: A very solid imperial stout. Very black and burnt malt flavor – almost like unsweetened chocolate with a hint of espresso. The scent has a hint of the aroma of soy sauce. I’ve noticed this element in other beers as well (most notably in Lagunitas’ Reuben and the Bretts). Low hop presence, so the malts are in charge. Low carbonation. High in alcohol at 11%ABV, so it has the strength of a barley wine, so this is most definitely a slow sipping beer. It is also one that benefits from warming toward room temperature. As it gently warms, the flavor becomes more subtle and more smooth (or, maybe that’s the consequence an influence of having consumed much of the bottle). This is an expensive one at about $14 for 22oz, but comparable to a good bottle of wine, and you can share it in the same way. I didn’t, but you can. This is the first I’ve tried from Nectar. They are owned by Firestone, so the beers are brewed at the same facility, by the same brewers. This is a very good imperial stout – not as good as Sierra’s XXX version with Fritz Maytag, but that one doesn’t exist anymore. So, this is a good backup. Appropriately enough, I tried this on St. Patrick’s Day. What better occasion to try an imperial stout? I know, it’s not Irish, and my wife was gravely disappointed, but I’ve had a lot of Guinness in life and it seemed appropriate to me. She’ll get over it eventually.
Mar. 19: Today’s Beer: New Belgium’s Belgo: Belgian IPA. Cloudy, bottle conditioned, mildly yeasty. Tasty balance of hops, including Cascade, Centennial, Simcoe, Amarillo. Sweet fruity taste – very delicate and soft character, but with nice pleasant bitter finish. More Belgian than IPA. Good kick at 7% ABV. Nice golden color. I don’t know if I’ve been giving enough credit to New Belgium for their creativity.

Beer Log: March 1-8, 2012

Beer Log: March 1-8

Mar. 1: Today’s Beer Anchor’s Brekle’s Brown: Very tasty brown. It has a nice dark brown color and a nice sweetness that is more fruity than most browns, which tend to be a bit more earthy. Almost a hint of peach or apricot. At first sip, I found this a bit off-putting, but after I settled in, I began to enjoy the flavor more and more. It may be better after being out of the refrigerator for a little bit to let some of the maltiness come through. Nice head that is significantly thick, but dissipates quickly, so it is less carbonated than I at first expected. Also limited hopping from a single hop, the Citra, which probably accounts for the fruitiness. I hadn’t tried anything new from Anchor for a while, but they are the granddaddy of the craft industry. It’s good to see them keeping up by introducing new varieties.

Mar. 2: Nothing too new today, though I did get to revisit an old favorite on tap. The sports complex where I play indoor soccer has recently begun offering Lagunitas’ IPA on tap. It’s about damn time. I love this beer in general, and am very happy to have access to it from a keg. In this form there is also a slightly citrus flavor, kind of like grapefruit. So very, very wonderful.

Mar. 3: Today’s Beer: Mission Street’s Anniversary 2012: Billed as an Imperial Brown, and described as a blend of 3 other beers. Mission Street is a Trader Joe’s brand. I’ve heard rumors that it is brewed by Firestone Walker, and that wouldn’t surprise me. Their IPA is very similar in character and flavor to the Union Jack. This beer is very tasty and has a bit of an oaky flavor that is consistent with Firestone. It has limited hops, so most of the flavor is in the malt. It is sweet and slightly roasted in flavor, but heavier than a typical brown. Not as smoky as Devil’s Canyon’s Full Boar Scotch, but similar in its sweetness. Limited carbonation. High in ABV at 8.5%, and you can get a feel for its strength in the taste. There is also a slightly fruity element layered in, that is somewhat tart, but also has a hint of the smooth banana flavor that you get in some hefeweizens. A great buy at $2.99 for a 22oz. bottle.

Mar. 4: Today’s Beer: A revisit to Deschutes’ Hophenge. Still deliciously sweet and pleasantly hopped.

Mar. 5. Today’s Beer: Bear Republic’s Ricardo’s Red Rocket Ale: OK, it is now very soon. Just tried another Bear Republic offering, and there will be more. The Red Rocket Ale is billed as a take on a Scottish Ale. My reference point for most Scottish beers is Bellhaven, or Devil’s Canyon. This is very different from either of those. This is like a Red version of an IPA. The color is wonderfully deep – beyond amber. The initial scent is stunningly floral and inviting. The flavor also has a nice bright floral hoppyness, with a bit of pine and a dry finish. Some sweetness, but mostly a pronounced bitterness. Decent head, but not too bubbly. While it is bottle conditioned, there isn’t much of the yeasty flavor generally associated with bottle conditioned beers. It also is unfiltered, but is still remarkably clear. At 6.8% it has some strength, but won’t knock you over.

Mar. 8: Today’s Beer: Bear Republic’s Hop Rod Rye: With 18% Rye! Lovely beer. This is very much like a Scottish ale. Sweet, dark, and only mildly hopped, despite the description on the bottle. Limited head. Very strong, but smooth. Mild sourness. This may be their best. Well crafted and tasty. Also pretty darn strong at 8% ABV, but so smooth you won’t notice until it’s too late

Beer Log: Feb. 18-29, 2012

Beer Log: Feb. 18-29:

Feb. 21: Dad Brew’s Buxom Blonde Ale: This is a Kolsch. Very bright citrus taste at the outset with a nice lightly sweet finish. Slight yeastiness. Brewed in Fremont and only available on tap at a few places. Tried it at an Austrian restaurant in Campbell.

Feb. 22: Stone’s Double Bastard: Holy Crap. Stone is amazingly good at compiling sufficient superlatives to describe its own beers that they don’t need me to help in any way. This is deserving of all of them. An amazingly smooth, sweet, caramel, and hoppy experience that is beyond sufficient description. Very little head. Cloudy, deep orange-golden hue. Strong at 10.8%, but it the alcohol never presents itself at the fore. But, what a kick. I’ll be sleeping with visions of gargoyles dancing in my head.

Feb. 23:Widmer Brothers’ Brrrrbon ’11: Specialty release. One of their “Alchemy Project” line. Described as an ale “aged in bourbon barrels.”  Beautiful orange-amber color – like highly polished copper. Very limited carbonation and subtle hopping. The focus is on the character of the malt and the subtle influenced of the bourbon barrels. At 9.4% ABV, a complex sipping beer. The limited hop presence does allow the bourbon character to come through. Very smooth and enveloping – great for a cold evening.

Feb. 27: Today’s beer: Lagunitas’ Wilco Tango Foxtrot:. One of my favorite beers of 2011. Touted as a robust, malty ale for a jobless recovery, it lives up to its description. Much more of the flavor derives from the malt than the hops. It is well balanced and carmely. Dark brown in color. Much deliciousness. (April 2011) OK, just had the 2012 release and it is everything I remembered. On occasion, having a beer at one point and then not having access to it can lead the memory to build the experience and put it out of reach of reality. So, upon a second tasting, the beer seems disappointingly pedestrian. But not with WTF!  The glory continues!

Feb. 28: Today’s beer: Bear Republic’s Big Bear Black Stout: I’ve been on kind of a dark beer kick lately. Maybe it’s the weather turning slightly colder for California. And I’m happy to see so many breweries turning out stouts and porters, because sometimes it feels like everything is an IPA. This is an exceptional stout. It is everything a stout should be: thick, dark, nice burnt unsweetened chocolate flavor, with a slightly sweet undertone, and low carbonation. Strong at 8.1%, but doesn’t feel very strong – the burnt chocolate flavor drowns out any hint of alcohol. I haven’t had much from Bear Republic, but I will be trying more --- very soon.

Feb. 29: Today’s Beer: Port Brewing’s Midnight Expressions. This is a dark lager. Good slightly burnt malt flavor, that is reminiscent of a good porter. Less sweet than some porters, and with a light feel of a lager. I’ve gotten to really like the dark lagers and this one is right there with Moonlight’s Death and Taxes. I had this one on tap at Beer Revolution. (2/9/2012) Just also had a bottle as well, and I’m still impressed. It is much lighter than a stout, especially since the night before I had a very strong stout, so the comparison was pretty stark. This is lighter in flavor and taste, but still has enough of the dark malt character to make it interesting. It would be a good summer dark lager. It has more of a lightly sour flavor, more than the version that was on tap.